


the storm still speaks to me

by catboyred



Category: No. 6 - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, mostly shion waiting, rat kisses his hand, rats an asshole u know it, shions a crybaby but he Deserves it, yeah this is the reunion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:27:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27008833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catboyred/pseuds/catboyred
Summary: Four years, uncountable and lonely days, half a city rebuilt and a weight of unresolved trauma on Shion’s shoulders, and the rodent he’d been praying for finally returns.
Relationships: Nezumi/Shion (No. 6)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 37





	the storm still speaks to me

**Author's Note:**

> hi i wrote this 4 myself last year to cope. enjoy

He didn’t look back.

The word vow settles on Shion’s tongue like a knife now, oath and promise hold the same sharp weight. He’d ticked off days on old, coffee colored paper that resembled the letters he’d received frequently from around the sector. The hash marks were sorely different from the cursive words of praise he’d be sent-- all of which made his stomach cold. He was no hero, and if so, not of the generous type- he did what he had to. Maybe he revealed the government’s discrepancies in the process, but in reality, his focus had been saving Safu.  
Or maybe his mother, maybe Rat. Maybe it was himself.  
The days moved slowly for him now, three years and 47 days, all of which were dedicated to rebuilding the city (he’d been tasked with the job as soon as the wall had fallen). The nights were even longer-- those of which held their own worship to a window that held no familiarity to that of when he was thirteen _(or was it twelve? Eleven?)_  
His voice would still disappear into the rain, he’d still scream into the deafening sound of the earth's sorrow, but Rat never came, and the memory turned sour. Never once in his life had he been so desperate to wear one of the ugly knitted sweaters Safu had gifted him. Never once had he been so desperate to see her face again- the painful memory of her final lamentation to everything she was going to lose engraved in his memory, much similar to the medical knowledge he desperately remembered as a student.  
(Oh, Elyurias, your options for a successor were indeed perfect, but was it necessary to choose his best friend? Was it necessary to take her so soon? That wasn’t fair. Not after how he treated her.)  
Dogkeeper held him at a length nothing short of two feet away, frequent letters describing how fast Little Shion was growing and how the dogs were missing him so much. He planned visits frequently to visit them, as much as time would allow, and as always Inukashi would badge him with insults and whispers of _‘are you doing okay?’_  
The answer was always the same. He was waiting. He was working.

  


\---

  


Four years, uncountable and lonely days, half a city rebuilt and a weight of unresolved trauma on Shion’s shoulders, and the rodent he’d been praying for finally returns. In the night, just like the first time they’d met, and aged just as much as Shion himself had. It made him sick- it made him angry, it made him terrified and full of love that he couldn’t describe. This time it wasn’t in the middle of a summer storm, nor was Rat injured and in need of attention. No mother to make sure he finished his homework and no hot dinner waiting to be eaten. Not even a fancy, big house with technology they could only dream to have right now.  
No, Rat was here, but everything was different.  
_‘What a warm welcome.’_  
Shion hadn’t said a word, hadn’t even responded other than gaping for a brief moment. It was damn near heartbreaking seeing him now, after giving up. And then Shion was crying, and Rat was approaching. He was desperate and frantic but still fighting to hold a foot of distance between him and the ghost. The pale, scarred skin of his face burned, so similarly to the night he begged Rat to kill him, to when he lost Safu, to the endless nights of worry and torment. He was here now. Shion was livid.  
_‘I waited- I waited so long! Years, Rat- Counted the days like it was all I had left.’ He batted the gloved hand away that reached for him, taking a step back like the action burned his palm. ‘You can’t just-’_  
_‘And I’m back now, you big cry baby, c’mon.’_  
It burned his throat, the direct and blunt statement silencing Shion effectively, if only for a moment. The albino reddened significantly in humiliation and anger- here he was pouring his heart out only to be brushed away again. Like always, like every time he had an outburst before. Even years after he’d been removed from No.6, he still had no clue how to handle his emotions, how to express them without his seams tearing. It was pathetic, it was devastating, he couldn’t take it.  
_‘You can’t do this to me. Not right now. You can’t.’_  
Maybe the defeat in Shion’s voice finally got it through Rat’s skull, but the traveller lost his smug demeanor, looking as ancient and tired as he did when they’d first met (how very long ago, Shion would think.) There’s a hint of apology, but Shion knew he wouldn’t say it, and accepted that fact grimly. This didn’t feel like a reunion, not the one he dreamed about where Rat would show up and they’d weep. No, the romanticism of things like that died back when the wall fell, and he’d been wishing on a star that didn’t exist. Rat was romantic, sure, but not when it came to gentle topics. Not emotional ones.  
Maybe that was better, though, for them both.  
_‘I understand I took a while, but I didn’t break my promise.’_  
No, he didn’t, but it felt like he did. Felt like he’d completely abandoned Shion to deal with the repercussions. It felt like he was the same as he was four years ago, standing in an open desert, confused and terrified. Reunions, oaths, vows, he’d held onto the thought so tightly it nearly broke him, and funnily enough, now it was.  
A crack of thunder sounded outside.  
(Eluryias must be awake.)  
The rain comes quickly, and once again, Shion loses himself to it.  
Rat takes his hands, discarding his gloves beforehand, despite being previously shoved away. Gently held as always, Shion gets closer to breaking down at the contact, affirming that Rat truly was here. Water stains the window glass. Rat presses the back of Shion’s hand to his lips, and Shion wants to evaporate.  
_‘What kind of kiss is this?’_ Their list hadn’t grown in a while, not in goodnights or thank yous or promises.  
_‘A reunion kiss.’_ Rat says it without hesitance.  
Shion chokes on a laugh, clasping his fingers tightly around Rats, before letting go to tip into him for a hug. Rat catches him as easily as he’d catch a ball, and for a second, everything truly feels like home.


End file.
